Derek Muller: Wall Street Journal and American Lawyer Media

Professor Muller cited regarding increase in law school enrollment

December 19, 2017 | 2 min read

Professor Derek Muller's data was cited in the Wall Street Journal article, "Law School is Hot Again as Politics Piques Interest." The article reports on the recent increase in law school applications.

Via the Wall Street Journal:

Law school is still expensive, with tuition often costing upward of $45,000 a year. But schools have doled out more scholarships in recent years to lure applicants. The proportion of law school enrollees receiving grants rose from 49.9% in 2011 to 67% in 2015, according to an analysis from Pepperdine University School of Law professor Derek Muller. The percentage receiving grants covering at least half of their tuition rose in the same period from 16% to 27.4%.

Professor Muller was also quoted in the American Lawyer Media (ALM) article, "Law School Enrollment Edges Up, with Surprise Spike in Non-JD Programs. The article reports on the increase of non-J.D. students who are studying for LL.M., masters, or certificate degrees.

Via American Lawyer Media:

Traditionally, many LL.M. students come from other countries, noted Derek Muller, who writes about enrollment trends on this blog, Excess of Democracy. He expected non-J.D. enrollment to drop because of unpredictable immigration and travel rules under the Trump administration. “Apparently, law schools are finding students—domestic or foreign—interested in these programs,” said Muller, a professor at Pepperdine University School of Law.

The non-J.D. program can bring in tuition-paying students who are not required to take the LSAT, and schools don’t have to report them to U.S. News & World Report for the annual law school rankings, added Muller. “There’s no question schools are looking to other programs to make up the revenue shortfall in J.D. programs,” he said.

In addition, Professor Muller was featured in ALM as the legal "What You Said" quotation of the day from the ALM article.